Citizenship saga: Anne Aly curiosities remain, Christian Porter says

Attorney-General Christian Porter says some Labor MPs are yet to provide evidence that their dual citizenship has been renounced, and “curiosities” remain over the case of Labor’s Anne Aly. …

Mr Porter said the government was prepared to accept a letter from the Egyptian Embassy stating Dr Aly’s Egyptian citizenship had ben renounced as “an authoritative statement about citizenship”.

However, he said there remained some unanswered questions over the undated letter.

“There are some curiosities about this. It appears Anne Aly’s citizenship was able to be renounced by a Council of Ministers in Egypt inside 48 hours. That would be one of the more efficient bureaucracies on earth,” he told Perth radio 6PR.

“This is an unsigned letter that appears to come from the Egyptian Embassy that says Anne Aly affected, so finalised, the renunciation of her citizenship.”

Bill Shorten has cautioned the government over any attacks against the citizenship status of Labor MPs like Anne Aly, warning it could trigger reprisals against the eligibility of Liberal MPs including Sydney based MP Jason Falinski.

The Opposition Leader today defended Dr Aly — who holds the marginal West Australian seat of Cowan — amid questions from legal experts about whether an unsigned document from the Egyptian embassy proved beyond doubt that she was no longer a dual citizen. …

Mr Shorten lashed out at the propagation of a “birther theory” in Australia’s political debate …

Presumably a by-election in a very marginal seat does not suit Bill Shorten, whose hold on Labor’s leadership would be severely shaken if Labor lost.